All the World's a Stage
by Random Ravenclaw91
Summary: Throughout his life, Draco Malfoy has thought everyone acts like they're in a play, especially his future wife, Daphne Greengrass. When he encounters her sister, Astoria, he doesn't know what to think. Why is she so strange? Why does he care so much?
1. Chapter 1

I stood in front of the door of Daphne Greengrass's mansion, kissing her. Suddenly she nearly fell backwards as the door opened abruptly behind her.

"I thought I heard someone out here," the girl said, smirking a little. "I just thought I should check."

"Astoria!" Daphne screeched. "Why did you do that?"

I looked from sister to sister, more amused than angry. Daphne stood glaring at her sister, and she stared insolently back, a smug look on her face.

Daphne had rarely told me anything about her sister, except her name. I knew, by the way she refused to speak of her, that she hated her sister and loved that she was still at Hogwarts. But now apparently she was back for Easter break.

They looked uncannily similar and yet vaguely different at the same time. Daphne was more beautiful. Her features were softer and more aristocratic. Her nose was straight and her blue eyes were clear — as easy to understand as she was. They had the same pale skin, dark brown hair, and colour of eyes. The quality of eyes was different though. As clear as Daphne's were, Astoria's were as murky. They were larger than Daphne's too, almost as if they were from a drawing. Astoria's face was splashed with freckles as if she didn't care about standing in the sun, and her nose was a bit turned up at the end, in a playful way, not at all arrogant.

"Ah, Daphne, can't you snog your young man inside? Mother and Father aren't home." She used a strange inflection in her words; they were overly formal, as if every syllable was a mockery.

"I know," she snapped. "Maybe I didn't want you intruding."

"Well, apparently that plan was a massive failure."

I choked back a laugh at her bold words, causing Daphne to whirl and face me. "Draco, she'll listen to you. Tell her to leave." Her voice changed when she was talking to me; the pitch raised and her words were far more soft.

I stared at Astoria, finding her strangely fascinating. "Why don't we go to my house?" I suggested.

"Wonderful idea," she agreed, grinning at me, but around around to glare again at her sister on last time.

As we were about to Apparate, Astoria called, "Have fun sleeping with him, Daphne!"

--

"They want you to meet her!" Daphne exclaimed, wild-eyed, as she walked into my house the following evening.

"Meet who?"

"Astoria!"

"I've already met her," I answered, confused.

"No, they want you to meet her properly. You know — with a dinner and then talking afterwards, where you'll never actually speak to her. I guess it's the gesture that counts."

"But why?"

"Oh, they heard about her little… joke, and they were afraid that might make you hate us or something." She grinned at me, very secure in the fact that I was in love with her.

"I will… on one condition."

"What's that?" she asked, laughing, leaning in to me, as if anticipating that I would suggest something sexual. That was far from the truth though.

"You have to tell me why you hate her."

That question was obviously not what she was expecting. Her usually happy face morphed quickly into a frown.

"I hate her because she's… annoying. Whenever I would have friends over, she would interrupt us. She would read my journal. She would take my clothes without asking. She would sneak around my room. She's so tiny and can walk so quietly — she loves to sneak up on people, especially me. She's just a weird kid, that's all. She doesn't act like anyone I've ever known. And when she's really happy, she _laughs_. It took me forever to figure that out… It's just so annoying."

I nodded and understood. Daphne was used to always doing the same thing. She was a perfect member of society, and her only goal in life was to marry a rich pureblood — I supposed that was currently me — but it sounded like her sister didn't.

"Oh, and she wants to do something with her life. She wants to get a job and be independent. My parents call her unique, but I think she's a freak."

"She's that bad?" I asked, one eyebrow raising.

"Yes, of course she is. You saw her last night."

Yes, I had seen her last night. The strange part was that I wasn't entirely sure why she was still on my mind.

--

Dinner went by uneventfully. Daphne's parents were undoubtedly permissive, doting upon their daughters with obvious delight. It was just as obvious that Daphne was their favourite; I knew they loved Astoria as well, but sometimes they looked upon her with a gaze I could relate to — as if she was a strange being they couldn't understand.

The more time I spent in her presence, the more she intrigued me.

Daphne was so simple to read. She was so straight-forward; nothing ever surprised me about her. I always knew what she would do before she ever considered doing it. I suppose I could attribute this to the fact that I knew her well, but it wasn't that as much as the fact that she was as transparent as glass.

Astoria was different — so different. Around her parents she acted so similar to Daphne, but I could tell that wasn't really the case. A half-smile so frequently appeared on her face, and I came to assume that it was caused when she was being sarcastic, or particularly amusing herself with her oddness. I found myself wanting to smile along with her, though of course that wouldn't have been the appropriate response.

After dinner I excused myself, and when I was on my way back to the table, Astoria was standing in the hallway, her gaze fixed on me.

"You know," she told me, the smile appearing again, "you aren't how I thought you would be."

"I don't think you're one to talk," I commented, staring back at her, feeling the strange urge to defend myself, suddenly feeling a bit offended by the smug look now that it was directed at me.

"I always thought the bloke to marry Daphne would be different than you. I thought he would be more dull, with less life. But I suppose you know how to hide yourself pretty well by now, huh?" Before I could answer, she demanded, "I want to talk to you."

I had no response to that. I wasn't used to such blunt comments. With the same small smile she took my hand and pulled me away. Not knowing what to think, what to do, or where we were going, I allowed it.

I don't know why I did. All I knew was that this was the most interesting person I had met in a long time, and that I definitely wouldn't mind hearing what she had to say to me.


	2. Chapter 2

Act 2: The Stage

There was something so other-worldly about her that I half-expected I would be brought to some supernatural place, like a clearing or a secret passageway. But I had no such luck. Instead, I was brought to her large bedroom. She stood in the open doorway for a minute while I examined the room. She was perfectly still and silent, as if she were assessing my every move.

I wandered about, picking objects up every now and then. It was sparse — it didn't fit her. The room was painted the palest blue, and it was adorned with white lace. It seemed like a princess's room, certainly, but not like her.

"I can't imagine you here," I commented casually.

She closed the door and walked to the other side of the room. It was the first time I noticed how fluid her movements were, almost as if she were floating instead of walking.

"Neither can I," she said in a bored tone, picking up a white satin pillow. She stared at it, and for a second I thought she would calmly replace it on the chair. Instead, the smile appearing just a split-second before, she whipped the pillow at my head — though she was standing far across the wide room — and it collided easily, her aim true.

"Hey, you brat!" I exclaimed.

"What can I say — I'm a Chaser," she laughed.

Without even considering it, I stooped and picked up the pillow, throwing it at her. It missed her head by inches, but only — I told myself — because she ducked.

I grabbed another pillow and closed the gap between us in just a few strides. I found myself laughing in a way I hadn't laughed in years. "What are you doing?" she asked, her voice growing high as she laughed as well. For an instant I considered the fact that Daphne told me Astoria laughed when she was truly happy, and that made my own smile widen.

I hit her with the pillow, not in a harsh way, but in one that was strangely playful. "Draco!" she shrieked, taking a step back. She stepped on another pillow and began to lurch a bit, off-balance. She clutched my arms, jolting forward to prevent herself from falling. I felt my hands fall automatically to her waist, to steady her.

She looked up at me, and her face flushed. I was thrown off by such a natural reaction; for once she seemed like a real person, and I felt myself smile again.

"Thanks," she said.

I was instantly aware that my arms were still at her waist and that her hands were still tight on my arms. I suddenly realised how intimate the position was, especially the way her face was tilted up at me, and the way her eyes were staring at me…

I felt my smile fade as hers did, and reluctantly I removed my hands.

"Anyone ever told you that you're strange?" I asked her, unable to help myself from leaning toward her.

"I bet no one's ever noticed that you're just as strange," she said, her voice smug, and the smile appeared again.

"Sorry, but I don't think I'm quite to your level of absolute weirdness yet."

"You'll get there," she answered, and she leaned closer to me as well. Now there were just inches between us.

"Going to convert me?"

"I bet you'd like me to, wouldn't you?"

Her eyelids dropped a little, and my own eyes close just a moment later. I was being pulled into her, wanting nothing more than to close the gap — just a few small inches to get to her — that was all.

But abruptly I opened my eyes and stepped back quickly.

"Why the hell are you trying to seduce me, little girl?" I snapped.

She laughed again, but it sounded different this time; I wondered if this time it was actually a laugh instead of an indication of how happy she was. But I quickly shoved the thought out of my mind, wishing I didn't find every facet of Astoria Greengrass so intriguing.

"Seduce you?… No, I'm not trying to — though I'm sure it wouldn't be difficult."

It was strange that I could still be startled by her comments like that. "How old are you?" I asked.

"Seventeen," she answered easily, dropping gracefully to the ground, where she sat comfortably against the couch. I must have been giving her a startled look, because she smirked slightly as she gestured to the ground across from her. "I have a feeling you're going to be asking me a lot of questions, aren't you?" she asked.

"What will your parents and Daphne think we're doing?"

"Oh, Mum and Father will probably think I'm terrifying you with the inner workings of my screwed-up mind, and Daphne will probably think we're having sex." She shrugged nonchalantly, her voice as blunt as always.

It was all I could do to choke back a laugh. So unusual, this girl. I sat across from her, wondering where to start. There was nothing I didn't want to know about her.

All my life I had been surrounded by purebloods who only said what they thought they should or what they thought others would like to hear. I wasn't much different, but after a while it got annoying, like I was always part of a play. I was saying my lines, others would say theirs in perfect sync, but underneath it all no one said what they truly believed… Well, perhaps a few fully believed it, but those were the ones even more mindless than those of us who were merely actors.

Astoria was fundamentally different. She had grown up in the same environment, and yet she wasn't a part of the play. Everything she did or said was unscripted, and so every single moment I was with her I was waiting for her to do something that I would never expect. She was like a breath of fresh air into the world that I had lived in for so long.

It was strange to not know the script anymore. Improvising all the time was sometimes a little intimidating, and yet I wasn't used to having so many possibilities.


End file.
